The GLIAC Tournament
The Wayne State men’s basketball team (15-11, 10-7 GLIAC) will face Michigan Tech in the first round of the GLIAC Tournament on Wednesday, Feb. 27 at 3 p.m. in Grand Rapids at the DeltaPlex. The Warriors, who are a No. 8 seed, will take on the No. 1 seed Huskies, who sport a 24-2 overall record with a 16-2 mark in the conference.
Scouting Michigan Tech
Michigan Tech, who sports a 24-2 overall record, is currently riding an 11-game winning streak. MTU’s last loss came against Findlay on Jan. 14 (91-80) at home. The Huskies only other loss came against Gannon on Jan. 3 (64-60) in Erie, Pa. In their last meeting, the Huskies posted a 71-70 victory over the Warriors on Jan. 12 in Houghton. WSU missed a layup at the buzzer to give MTU the win. In that game, freshman A.J. Parker led WSU with 18 points, while junior Justin Chapman had a team-high eight rebounds. Wayne State leads the all-time series with the Huskies, 42-21. Matt Cameron leads MTU with 18.2 points and 7.4 rebounds per game.
Wayne State GLIAC Tournament History
The Warriors have an 8-2 record in the GLIAC Tournament and have won three conference championships since 1992. WSU’s last league title came in 1999 when the Warriors defeated Saginaw Valley (79-61) in the first round, Gannon in the semifinals (75-68) and Michigan Tech in the finals (67-53). Wayne State also won league titles in 1994 and 1993. WSU finished second in the tournament in 1992.
Keep Being Defensive
The Warriors are ranked No. 2 in the GLIAC in total defense, allowing just 65.3 points per game. WSU trails Gannon (64.0), who is first in total defense. The Warriors, who are outscoring their opponents by 8.0 ppg, also rank third in field goal percentage defense (.405) and second in 3-point field goal percentage defense (.298).
Wayne State Ranked in NCAA Regional Poll
The Wayne State men’s squad is ranked 10th in the latest NCAA Division II Regional Poll, which was released through games played on February 17. The Warriors, who are in the Great Lakes Region, are one of six GLIAC schools currently ranked in the poll. Gannon is ranked No. 2, Michigan Tech No. 3, Findlay No. 4, Hillsdale No. 6, Ashland No. 9 and WSU No. 10.
Versus Ranked Opponents
The Warriors have played four teams that were mentioned in the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Division II National Poll. Three teams are currently ranked in the poll. Gannon was ranked No. 9 and No. 13 when it played WSU, while Michigan Tech was No. 13. Findlay was knocked out of the top-25, but held votes in the poll, while Augusta State also held votes. WSU is 2-3 against the four ranked teams with its two victories coming against Gannon (70-56) and Augusta State (70-48) at the Lynn University Tournament (Nov. 23) in Florida. Wayne State fell at Michigan Tech by one point (71-70), took Gannon to overtime (84-78 OT) and dropped a four-point decision at Findlay (88-84) in their first meeting of the season.
Chapman Having Strong 2001-02 Campaign
In his first complete regular season, forward Justin Chapman has had a break-out year thus far. Chapman, a junior college transfer from Toledo (Alpena C.C.), is leading Wayne State in almost every statistical category. Through 26 games, Chapman leads the team in rebounds (7.5 rpg), scoring (12.5 ppg) and is tied for first in assists (57). He also ranks second on the team in field goal percentage (127-226, .562), while helping the team to a 15-11 record. Against Mercyhurst on Feb. 7, Chapman posted a season-high 16 rebounds.
For his success this season, Chapman was named the GLIAC South Division Player of the Week twice (Jan. 7, Feb. 10). The Jan. 7 honor was the first time a Wayne State men’s basketball player had been named GLIAC Player of the Week in over two years.
WSU Head Coach David Greer
WSU head coach David Greer, who is the 10th head coach in school history, is in his first season with the Warriors. Greer spent the previous six seasons at Detroit Mercy, the last three as the Titans associate head men’s basketball coach. This is Greer’s second appointment as a head coach on the collegiate level. In 1986-87 Greer was head coach of Tiffin University in Tiffin, Ohio. He led the Dragons to a 17-12 overall record that season.
News N’ Notes
WSU is a No. 4 seed in the GLIAC South Division and will face Michigan Tech in the first round of the GLIAC Tournament...The Warriors clinched a berth in the tournament with a 70-56 win at Gannon (Feb. 9)...It is the first time WSU has advanced to the tournament since the 1999-2000 season, when Wayne State finished 18-12, 12-7 in the GLIAC, good enough for a fourth seed in the South...Gannon (No. 13) is the highest top-25 ranked team WSU has defeated this season...Junior Justin Chapman posted a season-high 16 rebounds at Mercyhurst (Feb. 7)...Chapman has scored in double-figures 19 times this season and has posted 10 or more rebounds in a game seven times...Wayne State surpassed its win total from a year ago with 15 victories...Last season, the Warriors went 12-14 overall...The Warriors finished with a 6-1 record against GLIAC North Division opponents and a 4-6 mark against the South Division.
Last Time Out
On senior day, WSU ended the 2001-02 regular season with a 69-62 loss to Hillsdale on Feb. 23 at the Matthaei Complex. The Warriors, who have lost their last three games, had a 26-22 lead at the half. WSU’s lead was quickly extinguished as the Chargers took a 30-28 lead just three minutes into the second half. The Warriors later tied the game at 37 after a made jumper by A.J. Parker with 13:32 remaining. However, Hillsdale would respond with a three-pointer by Marius Kliokys to take a 40-37 advantage. The Chargers would keep the lead for the remainder of the game.
The HC lead would get as big as 11 points with 5:32 left, but the Warriors would go on a 9-4 run over the next three minutes to cut the deficit to six (58-52) at the 2:38 mark. HC’s Rodney Whaley would close the doors on WSU as he made 9 of 11 free throws in the final two minutes to seal the victory for Hillsdale.
WSU was led by junior Jeremy Denha, who scored 16 points on 7 of 10 shooting from the field. Sophomore Nick Dyer and junior Kendall LeSure added 14 and 10 points, respectively. Senior Reggie Kirkland led the team with eight rebounds in his last home game. Wayne State outrebounded Hillsdale 37-28 as a team.
A complete copy of this week's game notes is also available in PDF.
